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Tuesday, February 22, 2011

Trivetal Pursuit

Once upon a time, there was an awesome trivet who hung on my wall. It was wrought iron and tile, and it joined us for dinner nearly every night.

And then my son Thom happened to it.

Wrought iron is no match for my boy.

And glue was not the answer.

Fine. I've had a crush on glass mosaics for a while now, so before we attempt a huge project, let's do a little practice work on something everyone can manage without fancy tiling tools.
I bought the tiles months ago for a different project, which I abandoned, so there they were, just taking up space in my work shop.

And yes, I've tiled before, but not with this stuff, and I always like to do dry runs on something with very little commitment.

Seriously. Let's give this a whirl. You'll need:

One 12x12 tile, cheap please. Like $1.25

One 12x12 sheet of mosaic tiles in the clearance bin, $3.50

Grout. I was lazy and bought pre-mixed this time

Goop. This gets used in almost all of my projects except recipes. And I'm tempted

A butter knife

A sponge

Okay, first, on your 12x12 solid tile, slather a generous amount of silicone adhesive, which is wonderfully water proof.

Set the mosaic on the tile and arrange it evenly.

This is way too easy.

Let it set and grab your butter knife.

It's just grout, don't be scared.

Pretend you're making a peanut butter sandwich, but violently force the peanut butter into the bread.

Scrape the excess off with the flat side of the knife.

Wipe the tiles off with a barely damp sponge. There will still be a film over the tiles. Don't panic, it's supposed to be there. Walk away and find Ty Pennington on TV.

Now, the next evening come back and grab that damp sponge again and wipe off the haze.

Haze being the remainder of the grout on the tile.

See how easy that was?

I think we're ready for the the hearth project!

And we're also ready for a hot pot of spaghetti sauce.

Ever wanted to tile but you were a tad hesitant? Here's the project to give you confidence.
And wouldn't a matching backsplash and trivet be kinda cool?

45 comments:

Those little glass tiles are gorgeous. Chris has been doing tile work but we've never attempted a trivet. Very cool. Is that sunshine I see in the background of some of your pics too. I am seriously envious. Happy Tuesday!

That turned out gorgeous! And of course I love the impromptu tools - such as the butter knife. My first tiling project I used a plastic putty knife. Worked like a charm. Some of those fancy tools are overrated!

BTW - I can't WAIT to see what you have up your sleeve for the fireplace! Judging from this, it's gonna be amazing!

I've been wanting to try this for YEARS now. Years, I'm telling you. And you just gave me the kick up the behind I needed! Bless you, I can picture myself walking into the B&Q buying little baby- tiles now. Luv ya!

Beautiful. Glass tiles are one of my favorites - especially blues! You make that look so easy. We have tile laid out on a table top, just waiting for a "grout" lesson by my husband. Hope mine looks as great as this! :)

Um, I LOVE this idea!! I have been ogling some mosaic tiles at Home Depot lately and this would be a great way to use them! Not to mention, we'll have an entire bathroom to tile in the near future, so it would be great practice. I'm adding this to my must-try DIY list! Thanks for the helpful (and humorous) tutorial!

Thanks for the Tiling Tutorial. I have Tiled a Bathroom Tub and Shower Wall with Ceramic Tile and it was quite an undertaking, but a fun project. Using a Tile Cutter is a pretty neat project, too. Looks like you are a pro and ready for the next big project! Well done.

You know what's funny about this? To you, this was an easy project, but to me, grouting has always been a mystery. I, too, love mosaic glass, but I have never attempted to work with it. This is a great, simple tutorial. Thanks a bunch!

I enjoy reading your blog - the way you write is so much fun! This is a great project and I am going to bookmark it and be on the lookout for ultra cheap tile to try it with.

Can I ask how well this will stand up to hot pots? Should I seal it with something if I'm going to be putting very hot dishes on it? As you can see, I'm a total novice - but you make it seem so easy and your instructions are so good - I'm willing to try!

I love those glass tiles! That's a great idea. I have made grouted tile stepping stones for my back yard by breaking up small tiles and creating a mosaic in those terra cotta drip pans that you put flower pots in.

I have a few things in my house that have been no match for my boy either! :-) This looks so great and you made it sound easy peasy. Thanks so much for linking up to Inspiration Friday! I always love seeing your fabulous projects. Vanessa

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Meet the Redhead

No, not that kind of rehab! I'm a woman who likes to take what I have and re-imagine, recreate, and re-purpose it. Rehabilitate it to something useful and attractive. Something about throwing perfectly good items away rubs me the wrong way- unless of course you do it, at which point I'll probably drag it home. Having had a major house fire sure helps with motivation!
Hi, I'm Sunny! I'm a masochist who bought a ramshackle house 23 years ago and is still bailing a sinking boat!
I'm joined in this effort by my three great children, Samwow, 22, Thom, 20, and Savannah, 19, all of whom suffer from a hyphenated last name due to Mommy's feminism. We live in a huge historic Florida home overrun by cats and Arwen, the world's ugliest sweetheart of a dog. What's not falling apart is being actively destroyed, which is where I come in. I'm determined to make this a showplace. And you're welcome to watch and help. We have some serious work to do since the whole place caught on fire on August 16th, 2009, so grab a paintbrush and a load bearing wall and let's get to work!